Fastener for wall panels



' Dec. 29, 1936.. 1G. HAMILTON FASTENER FOR WALL PANELS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed July 8, 1935 1936- J. G. HAMILTON FASTENER FOR WALL PANELS FiledJuly 8, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 L7. [familial] Patented Dec. 29, 1936UNITED: STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,065,525 ms'rnnnn non WALL PANELS John G.Hamilton, McComb, Miss.

Application July 8, 1935, Serial No. 30,336

.5 Claims.

This invention relates tothe fabrication of the inner walls' ofbuildings and like structures from panel units made ofthe usualsubstances such as pressed fiber, wood pulp, bagasse pulp, plasterboard, ply wood, etc., and of any size from small pieces simulatingtile. to large sheets of room height.

The general object of the invention is to pro-i vide fastening devicesfor securing such wall units as above suggested-and others, to thestudding or underlying surface of the building structure and/or tosecure such units together, the

fasteners being concealed relative to the exposed,

side of the wall.

The invention is exemplified. in several embodiments each of whichfulfills, in additionv to the general object, certain specific objectsp'eculiar to each. y

One of the specific objects of theinvention is to provide a fastenerthat shallpenetrate throughthe mid thickness of adjacent units and besecurable to the underlying studding by a nail or the like, proceedingdiagonally through that part of one unit lying beneath the fastenerwhereby said unit is pressed into intimate contact with the studding,and providing an inclined plane for drawing the adjacent unit into closecontact with the studding.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a fastenerconsisting .of two' parts, one

of which is securableto the studding and the cracks opening between anyof said units. This arrangement makes it possible to use wall paper overwall surfaces on which its use has hitherto been impracticable onaccount of the shrinkage of the units and opening of fissures betweenthem, and also eliminates the use of metal tape, the countersinking ofnails,'puttying the joints, and the useof furring strips over thejoints.

Another object of the invention is the provision of pointed fastenersadapted to be employed in pairs, each having a portion adapted tounderlie the meeting edges ,of adjacent sheets and having oppositelydirected pointed portions penetrating thickness-wise of said adjacentedges,

one member ofsaid pair being secured directly to the underlying stud andthe other member being held in place by the sheet which overlies it.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a fast ner91' zy d l gi diembodiments thereof proceeds.

1 other form .of fastener;

shown in Figure 12.

nal section adaptedto have its underlying portion secured to a studhaving a pointed portion adapted to penetrate a sheet at an intermediatedepth along its tongue edge, the groove edge of the adjacent sheet beingadapted to seat in the 5 dihedral bend of said fastener for retainingthe said grooved edgein place;

Other objects'of the invention will appear as the following descriptionof several illustrative In the drawings which accompany and form a partof the following specification and throughout the several figures ofwhich the same characters of reference have been employed to designateidentical parts: 1 Figure l is a plan view showing wall units securedtogether and. to studding by means constituting one form of myinvention;

Figu're2 is a longitudinal section taken along modi.fled form in whichthe ends are unbarbed;

Figure 5 is a vertical elevation showing the use of one element, of theexpansion fastener for fixedly anchoring the end sheet to a wall;

Figure '6 is a section taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 5;

Figure'l is a perspective view of the expansion 30 fastener;

Figure 8 is a vertical elevation showing ana Figure 9 is a longitudinalsection taken along the line 9-9 of Figure 8; g t

Figure 10 isa perspective view of the fastener shown in Figure 8;

Figure 11 is a perspective view of a similar fastener provided withbarbs;

Figure 12 is a vertical elevation of still an- 4 other form of fastener;

Figure 13 is a longitudinal sectiontaken along the line l3--I3 of Figure12; and

Figure 14 is a perspectiveview of the fastener Referring now in detailto the several figures of the drawings, and first adverting to that formof the'invention shown in Figures 1 to 3, in-

clusive. the numerals l and! represent adjacent sheet wall units orpanels spanning the spaces between studding 3 and being secured to thestudding. The sheets in this form of the invention have edges 6 lying inplanes perpendicular to their front and back surfaces of said sheet,

the sheets and studding being related as is common in building practiceso that they meet in the middle of a piece of studding. The fastenercomprises a metal sprig 5 bent so as to have a perpendicular web 6 andupper and lower pointed portions 1 and 8. The pointed portion 1 is flatwhile the pointed portion 8 has an intermediate bend 9 best shown inFigure 2 defining a plane Ill inclining downwardly toward the bottom ofthe web 6. The upper angle of fold, between the pointed portion 1 andthe web 6 is provided with a hole ll preferably on an inclined axis. Thepointed portions 1 and 8 may be barbed as shown at l2 in Figure 3 orunbarbed as in that form of the invention shown in Figure 4.

The fastener of Figures 3 and 4 is employed as follows: The pointedportion 1 is stuck into the side edge of the panel 2 as shown in Figure2 intermediate the front and back surfaces. The panel is laid againstthe stud and a nail is driven diagonally through the hole H into thestud 3, thus securing the fastener in place. It will be observed thatthe nail penetrates that portion of the panel 2 which lies below theembedded portion of the fastener and thus draws the panel into closecontact with the stud 3. The presence of metal beneath the nail headprevents the nail tearing into the edge of the panel which is aparticularly desirable feature where the panel is of loosely pressedfibrous material such as characterizes some insulation board. Since thefastener lies intermediate the exposed and inner surfaces of the wall,the nail head is concealed. The adjacent panel is thrust sidewise uponthe pointed portion 8 until it has penetrated the panel i to its fulldepth and the sides 4 of the adjacent panels come into close contact.The inclined plane In of the pointed portion 9 crowds the material ofthe panel down into the restricted place between the stud and saidinclined plane and thus holds the panel into close contact with the stud3. In Figure 2 both pointed portions of the fastener are provided withthe barbs it which prevent the panels working away from one another.Separation of panels is however positively prevented by means of thenail which secures the opposite edge of the panel 2 to the studding 3which said opposite edge overlies.

The barbs l2 may be objectionable from the standpoint of discomfort inhandling through injury to the workman's fingers. Therefore, themodification shown in Figure 4 has been developed which is similar toFigure 3 in all respects excepting that the barbs l2 have been omitted.This form of the invention is usedin exactly the same way as that formshown in the first three figures and the two panels will stay togetherby virtue of the nails which anchor their corresponding edges.

In Figures 5 to 7, inclusive, a form of, invention is shown in which thefastener comprises a fixed base I! adapted to be secured to the studdingby nails driven through holes M and IS in said base. The base is stampedout so as to form a broad trough or channel "5 bridged in a transversedirection by a strip 11. A movable cleat i8 is slidably seated in thechannel I 5 and passes beneath the strip H which normally holds itinseparable with respect to the base IS. The cleat I8 is free to slidelongitudinally or sidewise and in the form of the invention shown, it islightly held in position for application by the formation of a bead I9upstanding from the bottom of the channel I i and recei ed Wit in 8groove 20 on the bottom of the cleat it. The cleat has teeth 2| and 22adapted to be driven in the back surface of a panel or wall unit. Theteeth are preferably curved so that when driven into the wall unit acomponent of the driting force acts in a direction to deflect the teeth2i and 22 which grip the material of the sheets as indicated in Figure 6on the left hand side. The length of the teeth 2| and (22 is such thatwhen they are in fully interlocked position with respect to the adjacentbuilding sheets they fall short of penetrating the exposed e of buildingunit and therefore remain co 7 1d. Between the teeth 25 and 22 is asmall llBDEC. prong 22' which not only penetrates the wall board, butreinforces the bases of the teeth 2i and 22 so that the bending of theseteeth is concentrated near their free ends ensuring the penetration ofthe teeth to the proper depth in the wall panel.

It is obvious from Figure 6 that due to expansion and contraction of thewall, the sheets I and 2 can move as a unit either to the right or leftor up or down without developing a crack between them.

Certain wall board compositions contract and expand under varyingconditions of temperature and atmospheric hygroscoplcity to such anextent that cracks develop between the sheets when the boards contractand bulge and. warping de velopes when the boards expand, Wallsconstructed from such units being unadapted for deoorating with wallpaper. 80 universally is this lilnitation recognized that the manufacturs; certain composition wall hoards advertis their product is not adaptedfor wall paper, thus greatly restricting its field oi usefulness. T efastener of the present invention can be employed to prevent the openingof cracks and fissures in wall board of this description. In employingthe invention forthis purpo 2, essential that side wall of a r {anchoredto tho studding adjacent 1 cs the room. his is accomplished bydisassembling several the expansion fasteners such as are shown inFigure l by slipping the cleat 23 from under the bridge strip N. This ismade possible through the fact that the bottom of the channel it is cutout on opposite sides of the strip ll forming a hole or opening 23 ofconsiderable width, underlying said strip. When the cleat :28 has beenpushed as far as possible either to the right or left, it may, thanks'to the opening 23 be rotated about the bridge strip H as an axis and bereadily removed. Several of these sz'ips are mailed at verticalintervals along a corner stud, one being shown in Figure 5. The firstpanel is then laid against the stud and the fasteners which have beenaffixed thereto and hammered on the front or exposed side above saidfasteners so as to make the teeth 2! and 22 penetrate the back side ofsaid sheet and inter-loci: with the substance of the sheet. Now, it isclear that due to the fixation of the cleats is, the panel cannot shifteither to the right or left. Now, along the studding which underlies theopposite edge of this first panel, a plurality of the complete expansionfasteners are secured in vertical relation and the studding oi the firstsheet secured to the cleats iii of the complete expansion fasteners byhammering on the exposed surface oi the panel above said fasteners inthe manner described. The adjacent that 1 shown on the left hand side ofFigure 6. The

second sheet is then 1i and 22 through its back surface. The'successivesheets areia'id in similar manner.

The base '3 is provided with transversely ex-.

tending faces l3 lying flush in the plane of the 'bridgepiece l1, theirparticular value being to afford a slideway for the second panelpermitting it to be brought into abuttment with the adja- .cent' edge ofthe first panel without colliding with-the side of the bridge piece andthereby prevented from making a close joint.

It is clear now that when expansion takes place,'thecapacity of theunits .to shrink separately has been eliminated and the entire'wall a 5.

moves relative to the edge which 'is anchored to the studding by theseparated cleats l8 shown on the-right hand side of Figure 5. This move-'ment makes a crack or fissure in the opposite corner of the wall havinga width equal to the aggregate gap which would otherwise occur betweenthe several. sheets, but this may beeilfectlvely concealed by 'avertical corner bead or I molding secured to the side wall which isadjacent to and perpendicular to the edge of the wall lnwhich therlssure and crack develops, or by allowing the free expanding andcontracting end of'the wall to slide behind the adjacent wall atpendlcular to the front and back surfaces oi the sheets. These fastenersare used in pairs. a single fastener is shown in Figure 10 and consistsat a sheet metal member it having a bayonet-shaped longitudinal crosssection formed by folding the metal so as, to provide an intermediateBil web dd, a securing lug it and a pointed embeddw I portion ill.

For the sake'of facility in manu= factoring, all or the lugs it areprovided with a nail hole td but in only oneof a r of fasteners is anail applied. The method or procedure is as follows: The pointed portionill of one fastener is thrust into one edge of a wall panel intermediateits front and back surfaces and to the lull depth of the pointed portionuntil the web it rests against the edge-oi the panel. The depth at whichthe pointed portion ti is thrust into the. panel is determined so thatthe lug lit will flush with-the bottom surface oi the panel. The lug isthen nail to the underiying studding as is clearly shown at lit inFigure d. The other fastener of a pair is then thrust into theconfronting edge of an adjacent panel with the lug it flush with thebottom oi the panel and the panel is then pushed up into close contactwith the first panel which has already been fired to the stud, the lugoi the second panel sliding under the first panel, and the second panelresting above the lug lllt'whlch projects item the first panel andconcealing the same. There may be, if desired, 'twoor three pairs ofiasteners for each edge, the number used being determined by therigidity of the material oi the wall panel, and the height oi the wall.

in Figure 10 this form oithe invention is shown without barbs. It mayhowever be provided with barbs it as shown in Figure 11 and the barbswould have the same function as the barbs described in connection withFigure 3.

. V accuses hammered to drive the teeth The group of Figures 12 to 14,inclusive, illustrates a form 01' the invention which is particularly'desirable for wall panels which interfit by means of cooperating tonguesand grooves 'such as are shown respectively at 30 and ii, in Figure 13,in which 30 is the tongue and 3| the groove. Tongue and groove unitsjmaybe of any size, but are customarily of small area and simulative oftile. The fastener exemplifying this modification is shown in Figure14.and comprises a sheet metal member 32 oi longitudinal Z-shaped crosssection being folded to form dihedral angles 33 and 34 connected by'acommon inclined web 35.

The upper pointed portion 36 of said member is designed to be forcedinto the edge of the panel along the apex of the tongue, the underlyingportion of the tongue being-received in the dihedral angle 33. Thebase'portion it is provided with a nail hole t'l. The unit 39 thusimpaled is nailed to an underlying stud through the nail hole at asshown in Figure 13. The adjacent panel has its grooved side'brought intoconjunction with the tongue on the panel already laid, and overlying thebaseportion dd andv with the lower edge of its groove received inthe-dihedral angle 3d.

The above construction enables adjacent units 7 to be laid close withthe complete concealing of the fastener and the second unit laid will bemaintained in close contact withthe tongue of the first unit by thefastener all at the opposite side of said second unit and which isnailed to the stud which underlies the said opposite edge of said unit.In the laying of simulated tile, the fasteners at are arranged on onehorizontal and one vertical edge oi each unit. I

While I have in the above description disclosed what I believe to be apreferred and practical embodiment oi ny invention, it will beunderstood by those skilled in theartthat the details of construction asillustrated and described are merely by way ole r a pha and not to beconstrued limiting the scope oi the invention which is to be determinedonly by a fair interpretation of the appended clai.

What I claiin'is:

l. Concealed fastener i'or wall panels comprisdiate web and upper andlower portions debouching' from said web in opposite directions, one ofsaid portions being been, for penetrating the sub-- stance of a panelfrom the edge surface thereof,

- the other of said portions being adapted to coan underlying support,the edges of said member being provided with slits, and edges of saidslits being upset forming herbs.

3. Concealed fastener for wall panels comprls-.

ing a sheet metal member having an intermediate web, and upper and lowerportions debouching angularly from said web in opposite directions, saidportions being keen, for penetrating the substance of adjacent panelsfrom the edge suriaces thereof, said member having a nail holepenetrating the apex of the angle between said log a sheet metal memberhaving an intermeweb and upper portion, for securing said member to anunderlying support by a nail driven obliquely through said hole, and themargin of the panel beneath the upper portion of said fastener.

4. Concealed fastener as claimed in claim 3, edges of said member beingbarbed.

5. Concealed fastener for wall panels having interfitting tongue andgroove edges comprising a sheet metal member having an intermediate weband upper and lower portions debouching from said web in oppositedirections, one of said portions being keen for penetrating thesubstance of one panel from the edge surface thereof, the other of saidportions being parallel to the first mentioned portion and being adaptedto cooperate with an adjacent panel, said web being inclined so as toform acute dihedral angles with said portions each of which angles isadapted to receive a. complementary part of the interfitting edges ofsaid panels, said member having a nail hole for securing it by a nail toan underlying support.

a 6. Concealed fastener for wall panels comprising a sheet metal memberhaving an intermediate web and upper and lower portions debouchingangularly from said web in opposite directions, saidportions being keenfor penetrating the substance of adjacent panels from the edge surfacesthereof, said member having a nail hole by which it is adapted to besecured to an underlying support, one of said angularly debouchingportions being formed with an intermediate part inclining downwardlyfrom its free and toward said web whereby a panel driven on to said freeend is forced against the underlying support.

JOHN G. HAMILTON.

